Published on: August 3, 2025 / Updated on: August 3, 2025 – Author: Markus Becker
Sabotage, blackout, chaos: How NATO protects its supplies when nothing else works – Creative image: Xpert.Digital
Tanks by train, not trucks: The surprising reason why rail is unbeatable in a crisis – Why rail is the true lifeline in an alliance
Safe supplies by rail – why rail is indispensable in the event of a disaster
How rail freight transport can be secured against attacks in a defense or alliance situation (V-case), what technical surveillance options exist, and why rail remains the strategically more reliable option than road despite recent acts of sabotage. I have particularly considered NATO and EU structures, current security policy insights, and Bundeswehr and police strategies.
Background: Sabotage series and growing doubts
Acts of sabotage against railway lines have recently made headlines. For example, cable fires along a Hamburg – Berlin line in September 2023 led to significant disruptions to rail traffic. In October 2022, a targeted attack on railway communication cables paralyzed rail traffic in northern Germany for hours before the damage was repaired within a few hours. Such incidents fuel doubts about whether rail transport would still be practical and safe in a crisis. Yet, rail is essential to NATO's ability to quickly move large quantities of troops and equipment toward its eastern flank. The following sections use data, facts, and examples to illustrate why rail is the safer and more efficient means of transport in an emergency, despite the risk of sabotage.
Rail as a logistical key to NATO's eastern flank
Only rail can move large troop units and heavy equipment in the shortest possible time. Studies confirm that rail transport is the "key branch of land transport for rapid operations with large troop strengths." The practical experience of NATO allies supports this: In 2017, for example, the complete equipment of a US armored brigade was transported via Germany to Eastern Europe as part of Atlantic Resolve. From the port of Bremerhaven alone, around 900 wagons full of military equipment were sent by train to Poland – equivalent to a train length of about 10 kilometers. By comparison, only around 40 vehicles had to be transported by road. In another case, US troops used 21 freight trains plus 150 trucks to transport their tanks and equipment from a landing port to the training area. These figures clearly demonstrate that a single military train can replace dozens of heavy-duty transport vehicles and move hundreds of tons of equipment in one go. The railway is thus the backbone of military mobility – Germany in particular, with its dense network of ~38,000 km of tracks and central location in Europe, is considered a logistical "hub" for deployments to NATO's eastern border.
Road congestion risk: an incalculable bottleneck in the event of a crisis
In contrast, road traffic is extremely vulnerable to disruption in the event of a crisis or defense. While plans envisage military traffic having priority over civilian vehicles on highways in the event of a war breaking out, the reality could be chaotic: fleeing civilians and panicked withdrawals could clog the roads even before official regulations take effect. Even in peacetime exercises, military convoys must comply with time-consuming regulations – such as driving only at night to avoid disrupting civilian traffic. However, sudden evacuation traffic or accidents along the routes could massively slow progress, even with prioritization. Historical experience shows that disorderly flows of refugees can paralyze entire highways (e.g., observations at the outbreak of the war in Ukraine in 2022, where civilian vehicles were backed up while trains continued to move).
In addition, roads are more difficult to secure: Thousands of potential routes and access points would have to be monitored, as alternative routes over country roads or even unpaved paths would be sought. A single blocked highway – perhaps due to broken-down vehicles or targeted attacks – can disrupt entire supply plans. Rail offers an advantage here: There are a few, clearly defined main corridors to the east that can be specifically protected and kept clear. In an emergency, civilian rail traffic could be quickly thinned out or stopped, allowing military freight trains to travel freely – without the risk of spontaneous traffic congestion caused by civilians.
Monitoring and securing railway lines
A key advantage of the railway in the event of a disaster is the improved monitoring and security of the infrastructure. Railway lines are fixed lines and not extensive networks like roads – thus, potential danger spots are more localized. Protecting the railways is already a topic of discussion: Following the attacks, the police union called for state-of-the-art surveillance technology for railway lines, such as drones, motion sensors, and camera surveillance along the tracks. Particularly sensitive sections – such as high-speed lines or junctions – should be secured with fences equipped with electronic alarm systems. Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser announced a significant expansion of video surveillance at railway facilities (from 9,000 to 11,000 cameras).
Infrastructure operators are also working on technical solutions. In 2024, Deutsche Bahn unveiled a new long-range drone that will be used to monitor the rail network in the future. Starting in 2025, around 100 such drones are to be deployed across Germany. They can cover a range of around 150 kilometers and can patrol even during ongoing train operations, at night, and in bad weather. The drones' high-resolution cameras and sensors provide emergency teams with real-time images of the track condition. This allows, for example, damage and foreign objects to be quickly identified after an incident or storm without having to send personnel to dangerous areas. In addition, modern railway safety systems have built-in fail-safe mechanisms: If a track is interrupted or tampered with, track circuits or sensors register this – signals turn red, and trains automatically come to a stop. Sabotage would therefore be immediately noticeable, before accidents occur.
The deployment of personnel for security purposes is also important. In Germany, railway surveillance is primarily the responsibility of the Federal Police, which would increase its presence along the routes in an emergency. The Bundeswehr can also contribute its forces as part of territorial defense: German military police have already escorted and secured transports during Host Nation Support exercises for US troops. This experience would be expanded in an alliance setting – for example, through constant patrols of critical bridges or tunnel sections, mobile surveillance teams with thermal imaging cameras at night, and coordinated helicopter flights along the routes. Following the Nord Stream sabotage, NATO and the EU also emphasized that protecting critical transport routes is a top priority. Cooperation between European railway police forces (for example, in the Railpol network) and NATO support forces would ensure that railways are closely guarded. In short: in a V-case scenario, far more security resources would be available to protect the tracks than is possible or necessary in peacetime.
Fast repairs and high resilience of the rail network
What if something does happen? Another reason why rail is considered a safer option is its comparatively quick repairability and reliability. Experience shows that railway engineers can often repair damage in a very short time. In the aforementioned act of sabotage in 2022, it only took about three hours for train service to resume after important cables were severed. The arson attack on cable ducts in 2023 also did not cause lasting chaos: despite more than 30 train cancellations, traffic largely returned to normal by the next morning. Experienced railway emergency teams are on call around the clock to bridge damaged lines, rewire switches and signals, or even replace sections of track in an emergency. For major damage – for example, to bridges – the military and the Federal Agency for Technical Relief (THW) have temporary replacement structures ready. While a crater on the highway forces large-scale diversions, a damaged track can often be bypassed using alternative routes or quickly built over with temporary track elements. Europe's rail network is dense enough to divert trains to alternative routes in the event of a local disruption.
Furthermore, the volume of regular rail operations clearly demonstrates the high load that rail can handle and how routinely disruptions are managed: In the EU alone, over 398 billion tonne-kilometers of freight were transported by rail in 2022 – Germany accounts for the largest share with 125 billion tkm (31%), followed by Poland (15%). This enormous traffic volume is largely handled according to schedule despite weather conditions, construction work, or isolated disruptions. The systems for operational control and maintenance are robust and scalable – in an emergency, civilian goods and passengers would be held back, allowing the network's full capacity to be used for military transport. EU plans explicitly mention the expansion and maintenance of dual infrastructure: roads, railways, and bridges across Europe will be inspected for heavy military equipment and upgraded. This also includes rapid repair concepts to ensure that damaged sections are immediately passable in the event of a conflict.
The railway remains the more reliable route in the event of a V-case
Despite justified concerns about recent acts of sabotage, there is much to suggest that rail transport is safer and more efficient than road convoys in a defense situation. Rail can move enormous quantities of materials quickly and efficiently – it is the logistical backbone of NATO's eastern flank. Unlike the flexible and chaotic road system, the rail network offers clear, controllable corridors that can be continuously monitored. Technical aids such as drone patrols, sensor fences, and intelligent surveillance systems further increase track security. Should damage nevertheless occur, examples from peacetime and wartime (for example, in Ukraine) show that rail teams can repair lines in record time. Ultimately, in an emergency, the military and police will join forces to prioritize the protection of railway lines – from the German Federal Police and the Military Police to NATO forces monitoring Europe's critical infrastructure.
In short: Rail is predictable, monitorable, and resilient. While congested roads threaten chaos, rail traffic remains more predictable – and thus, in the event of a disaster, the safe way to reliably transport troops and supplies to their destination.
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Markus Becker
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